THERESA May made a flying visit to Scotland yesterday as she undertook a one day whistle stop tour of the UK to mark a year’s countdown to leaving the European Union.
She dropped by a weaver’s business in Ayr as Scottish and UK ministers continue to be locked in deadlock over her key Brexit legislation, the EU Withdrawal Bill, and where powers in 24 devolved areas being transferred from Brussels should reside.
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The Scottish Government wants Holyrood to be responsible for all of the devolved powers and for it to be given the power to consent – or veto – UK wide frameworks being drawn up post Brexit, such as over farm payments, animal welfare and food standards.
But the Conservative Government insists such legislation must be for Westminster to decide.
Amid the impasse Holyrood and the Welsh Assembly both passed alternative legislation to ensure their devolution settlements are protected from a Westminster “power grab” that they say the Westminster Bill would lead to.
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In a stage managed visit, to which just the BBC and Press Association (PA) were invited from the media, the Prime Minister insisted there was no power grab and that post Brexit Edinburgh would be handed more powers.
“Let’s be clear, there is no power grab, we are not taking back any of the powers that are currently devolved to the Scottish Government, indeed the Scottish Government will be receiving more powers as a result of us leaving the European Union,” she told PA at Alex Begg weavers, which produces luxury cashmere scarves and accessories.
“What we’re discussing with the Scottish Government is how we can do that and ensure we still maintain the ability for Scottish farmers, for Scottish businesses, to trade freely across the whole of the United Kingdom, just as we are negotiating the agreement to ensure they can continue to trade freely with the rest of the European Union.”
The SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford has claimed May herself is the “block” preventing an agreement. Asked about this, the PM said her government was having “good discussions” with Scottish ministers, adding: “We have put forward proposals as to how this issue can be resolved.”
She continued: “We’re clear that when powers come back to the United Kingdom, when we leave the European Union more powers will be devolved to the Scottish Government, but we want to ensure as we do that that people, businesses here in Scotland are able to continue to trade freely across the whole of the United Kingdom today, that’s what we’re talking to the Scottish Government about.
“There’s a whole list of something like 150 powers, the vast majority of them are actually powers that are going to be directly devolved to the Scottish Government. But we want to ensure that in simple things like selling food across the whole of the United Kingdom, that there aren’t any barriers put up to doing that as freely it can happen today.
“What we want to do is ensure that we devolve – as we will – more powers to Scotland but at the same time we maintain that internal market with the United Kingdom.”
The PM also hit back at research forecasting Brexit would damage the economy and insisted it would bring opportunities which the four nations of the UK should “come together” to seize.
Scottish Brexit Minister Mike Russell wasn’t convinced. “Scotland voted by a margin of 24 points to remain in the EU but the response of the UK Government has been to seek to impose a disastrous hard Brexit and mount a power grab on the Scottish Parliament,” he said.
“We have been clear we are not opposed to UK-wide arrangements in devolved areas when these are in Scotland’s interests but this must only happen with the agreement of the Scottish Parliament.
“The Scottish Government could never recommend consent to a bill that allows the UK Government to take unilateral control of devolved powers and we are continuing to press that case with UK ministers so that agreement can be reached.”
He added that Holyrood’s EU Continuity Bill would be used to protect devolution, if there is no agreement with the UK Government on the EU Withdrawal Bill.
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